Ethan.
She must have spoken his name because he swung around. His tanned face broke into a smile that resembled both Cordell’s and Henry’s.
She walked forward. “Hi, you must be Ethan.”
Ethan took off his hat and extended a hand. “And you must be Payton?”
“Yes, I am.” She returned his handshake. “Welcome to Montana.”
“Thanks.”
Up close she could see subtle differences between the twin brothers. Ethan’s eyes might be the same clear blue, but whereas Cordell’s were as turbulent as a storm-fed creek, his were as calm and as steady as a still pond. The strong line of his jaw hinted at a strength equal to Cordell’s, but a strength that would be quiet and considered.
Realizing she was staring, she quickly slipped her fingers from his.
The breeze teased her hair and fine windblown strands clung to the gloss on her lips. She brushed them away with a quick hand. So much for making a good first impression on the brother of the man she loved. She was wearing makeup and a dress and looked nothing like a working cowgirl who wanted to be taken seriously.
“Your mustang mare is a little beauty,” Ethan said with a wide smile. And in his smile she saw all the lightness and laughter Cordell had gifted to his brother by shouldering the darkness of their childhood.
“She is. I was hoping she’d teach bossy Mossy some manners.”
Ethan chuckled. “I’m afraid it’s too late for that.”
Mossy bared his teeth and leaned over the fence to swipe at Ethan’s arm. Ethan casually moved away.
“Mossy, that wasn’t very nice,” Payton said with a frown.
“It’s okay, it’s not personal,” Ethan said, taking a step closer to the fence. As Mossy again bared his teeth, Ethan reached out to rub the horse’s neck. To her surprise Mossy’s ears flickered forward and he lowered his head.
“I don’t blame him for being ornery. He associates seeing me with Cordell leaving as I’m the one who then looks after him.”
A chill replaced the warmth of the autumn sun on her bare arms.
She took a second to speak. “And this time?”
“The same deal,” Ethan said not meeting her eyes.
All sound faded. All sensation ebbed. All she could hear was the desperate pounding of her heart. She’d left it too late to fight for her cowboy. Cordell’s duffle hadn’t been packed to move into the bunkhouse.
“When?” she managed.
“This afternoon. He used my sedan to bring Henry home as it would be more comfortable than his truck. So after he’s checked his cattle, he’ll swap vehicles, load his gear and then I imagine he’ll hit the road. Knowing him he’ll want to get into the office early tomorrow.”
“What about Mossy and the Texan cattle?”
“I’m staying for a couple of weeks to spend time with Henry, so I’ll check the cattle and also feed Mossy while I’m here. I’ll talk to Cordell, and then when I go I might take Mossy and the trailer home with me to Colorado Springs.”
She barely nodded. Her life was unraveling way too fast. Just like that, Cordell would be gone. And from Ethan’s solemn tone she had no doubt when he did return it wouldn’t be for long. He’d see Henry, check the cattle and then be off again. She squared her shoulders. She wasn’t done fighting. Until Cordell drove his truck through the main gate she wasn’t giving up stopping him from leaving.
Ethan rubbed his jaw. “I heard the sedan pull up, if you want to go and catch him before he swaps vehicles.”
“Thanks.” She angled her chin. “I do.”
Payton strode from the horse paddocks to the barn in record time. Cordell had parked Ethan’s conservative white sedan beside his truck. Back to her, he lowered the tailgate of his pickup. The driver’s side door was already open as if he needed a fast get-away. She slowed her breathing and strove for calm. This couldn’t be the last time she saw his Wrangler clad-butt and the snug stretch of his western shirt across his broad shoulders.
She knew the moment he realized she approached. He stiffened and slowly turned.
Her hair and dress had the desired effect.
His jaw didn’t drop. His face was a carved and immobile mask. But everything she needed and hoped to see was in his eyes. Hunger, longing, pain all flashed across his gaze in quick succession before a shutter descended over his emotions. The hope within her wavered. Her secret weapon hadn’t succeeded.
“So when were you going to tell me?” Her question emerged far more shaky than strong.
“Tell you what?” Wariness slowed his words as he glanced at the knuckles on his right hand.
“That you were leaving for good.”
He frowned even as his mouth tensed. “My brother tell you that?”
“He did.” She looked toward where Ethan still remained near the horses.
Cordell crossed his arms as his stare travelled slowly from the top of her blow-dried head to the tips of her scuffed boots. When he’d finished his thorough examination, her breaths were shallow and her hormones were over-heating. Her body might have only one thing on its to-do list but her mind had a plan to follow.
“You look … incredible,” he said, words husky. His darkened gaze returned to the tight white lace of the camisole that filled the gap left by the dress’s plunging neckline.
“Don’t try and change the subject.”
He sighed. “I’m not. Here …” He unfolded his arms and turned to reach into the pickup tray. He pulled out her favorite broken boots and the ripped horse rug she’d wrapped the abandoned calf in. “I’ll give you these before I get too … distracted. They’ve all been fixed.”
“Thanks.”
Never had a word been so hard to say. It was as though even speaking posed a threat to the tight grip she held on her tenuous self-control. Cordell might be leaving and yet he still looked out for her. He’d known the boots and the rug had needed mending without her saying anything and had taken them to Marietta to be repaired. He felt something for her even if he wasn’t prepared to act upon it and stay. It was all the encouragement she needed to change his mind.
“Payton –”
She closed the distance between them and pressed a finger to his lips. “I need to say something first,” she said in a firm voice, “and I hope it will change your mind about leaving. If it doesn’t then I hope one day you’ll find somewhere you feel safe enough to never leave.” She paused and fought to speak past the emotions stealing her composure. “I love –”
The rest of her words were lost in a gasp as Cordell’s warm hands secured her waist and he lifted her onto the tailgate. Even before her butt landed on the cold metal, his urgent mouth claimed hers. He kissed her like a man who had found a place to call home. A man who wasn’t ever going to leave.
She locked her arms around his neck to let him know she was never letting him go. Even if this was their good-bye kiss.
The clearing of a throat broke them apart. Chest heaving, she looked across to where Ethan rested his hip against his sedan. She saw the brothers exchange a long and serious look before Cordell rasped, “You say too much.”
Ethan grinned and winked. “You can thank me later.”
Cordell rested his forehead on hers and they remained silent, letting their ragged breaths do the talking, while Ethan reversed and drove away.
Still uncertain, despite their kiss and the possessive way he held her, of where the conversation was heading, she remained silent.
“You don’t know it,” Cordell said, drawing back a little and touching her cheekbone. Against her skin she could feel the shake in his fingers. “But my non-risk taking brother just lived dangerously. Did he say anything else when he told you I was leaving?”
Her hands slid from around his neck to grip his shoulders. “He said he might take Mossy home with him.”
Cordell chuckled. “And you think Henry is a rogue. Mossy isn’t going anywhere. And neither am I. What Ethan didn’t say was that I’d be back in a week … for go
od.”
“For good?” she said, a catch in her voice.
“Yes.” Emotion fired in his eyes, emotion he didn’t try and repress. “I’ve found somewhere I feel safe.” His lips touched her temple. “And that’s wherever you are.”
“Are you sure?”
She wasn’t even certain she’d asked the question, let alone that it had been coherent and audible.
“I had to think my way through it, but I’ve never been surer of anything in my life. Just like I’ve never been as scared as when I had to protect you from Trouble. I didn’t think I could deal with the fear of anything happening to you but the alternative is to not be with the woman that I … love.” He pulled her even closer. “And that isn’t an option.” The white flash of his smile brought tears to her eyes. “I love you too, Pay.”
The tenderness of his slow and thorough kiss silenced the last of her inner doubts that being by her side was where her cowboy wanted to stay.
“A week will be an eternity,” she said as they drew apart.
“I know, but it will give me time to complete the sale of my consultancy business to my manager and to pack up my condo.” Happiness intensified the blue of his eyes as he glanced toward the rugged mountain backdrop behind her. “I can’t say I’ll be sad to leave Denver.”
He tangled his fingers through her hair and lowered his mouth to speak against her lips. “Once Luke’s cattle have returned to Texas I’ll buy some of my own. Then there could be a few things for a cowboy to do around here if a certain stubborn cowgirl will let him help out.”
She nodded, incapable of words. It had rained and now Beargrass Hills would also have a team at the helm, just like in the days when her parents had run the ranch. The responsibility of preserving her home wouldn’t rest solely on her shoulders. She lifted her mouth to his, accepting all the help he’d ever offer.
When their kiss ended, Cordell took a step back. “I’ve got something else for you.”
She reluctantly let him go. He moved to the driver’s side seat, leaned in and pulled out a bunch of pink roses.
Her heart swelled. They were from the old pioneer rose bush at the cabin that she’d always picked blooms from with her mother.
He handed them to her with a gravity that promised her a lifetime of love and flowers.
“Luckily, I took these out of the sedan before that meddling brother of mine left. Little did he know, I wasn’t going to leave without telling you how I felt and that I’d be back to stay.”
She breathed in the faint perfume of the delicate pink buds and then placed the roses onto the tailgate beside her. She clasped the front of Cordell’s shirt to pull him against her.
“Just as well, cowboy, because on page one of the sassy and modern cowgirls’ manual it says to never let go of your man.”
He smiled a crooked grin. “I hope there’s also something in there about how to say goodbye to your cowboy who you won’t be seeing for a long and lonely week?”
“There could be.” She hooked her legs around him, her fingers skimming the hot, smooth skin where his shirt opened. He shuddered beneath her caress. “Help me get out of this dress and you’ll find out.”
“I thought you’d never ask.” His mouth found the sweet spot at the base of her throat before he lifted her from the tailgate and held her tight. “But the lace and the boots stay on.”
The Copper Mountain Rodeo Series
If you enjoyed Cherish Me, Cowboy, you’ll love the other Montana Born Rodeo series novellas!
Tease Me, Cowboy by Rachael Johns
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Kiss Me, Cowboy by Melissa McClone
Coming September 2014
Please Me, Cowboy by Megan Crane
Coming September 2014
Available Now
Did you miss last year’s rodeo? Check out the 2013 Copper Mountain Rodeo Series.
Tempt Me, Cowboy by Megan Crane
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Marry Me, Cowboy by Lilian Darcy
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Promise Me, Cowboy by C.J. Carmichael
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Take Me, Cowboy by Jane Porter
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About the Author
When not writing Alissa Callen plays traffic controller to four children, three dogs, two horses and one renegade cow who really does believe the grass is greener on the other side of the fence. After a childhood spent chasing sheep on the family farm, she has always been drawn to remote areas and small towns, even when residing overseas. Once a teacher and a counsellor, she remains interested in the life journeys people take. Her books are characteristically heart-warming, emotional and character driven. She currently lives on a small slice of rural Australia.
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Cherish Me, Cowboy (Montana Born Rodeo Book 2) Page 13